NBA analyst: The Mavericks will struggle to land top-tier free agents until end of Dirk Nowitzki era

This Story is About...

Share This Story On...

Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki (41) walks off the court after an NBA game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday, April 11, 2017 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. The Mavs lost 109-91. (Ashley Landis/The Dallas Morning News)

ESPN analysts Brian Windhorst and Dave McMenamin recently went on the Shan & RJ Show on 105.3-FM The Fan. Here are some highlights.

On Mark Cuban's reluctance to accept the draft as a means to rebuild prior this season:

Windhorst: "He was sort of stuck in the middle. He couldn't really embrace the draft because to get a high draft pick you have to really sink to the bottom. They never really wanted to do that. But I think if you looked at the last five years, maybe even longer, he hasn't been able to get the kind of impact in free agency like he wanted. Now, Harrison Barnes was a really good pickup. They took advantage of that situation and that's a victory. He just hasn't been able to get the premium players in free agency. And then when you look at the trades that they've made, it's been to sort of trade away draft picks, not to bring in draft picks. So the new CBA actually favors teams keeping their players. Now whether it will actually mean that or not, we will have to see because sometimes CBAs put in rules and teams find ways around them.

"But with this new CBA if you were to evaluate it sort of from a scientific standpoint, the draft is going to be more important. I don't think the Mavs really minded missing the playoffs this year even though they spent a lot of money. I think getting into this draft and into the lottery is probably a good thing for them moving forward. And if it means they have to do it again next year, it might not be the worst thing. But part of embracing the draft is you're not going to get a good pick with the 18th selection usually. You're probably going to have to get in that top-10 and that means losses."

McMenamin: "I covered the Lakers as a beat writer before the Cavs and I was there for the beginning of the tail end of Kobe [Bryant]. And it was really tough for the Lakers to convince superstars to come in and hitch their wagon to a team that's built around a guy who's gonna be on his way out. When players look at such a short shelf life that they have in their prime to convince them at any point to give up a year of their prime to not be in a situation where they have another superstar in their prime besides them, you're not going to be able to get guys there.

"It's not about the restaurants you guys have or what it's like to be around Texans every day of your life. It's about the personnel. And as great of a guy as Dirk Nowitzki is and an all-time legend of the game, the guy's making $25 million a year and is very limited in what he can bring to the table right now. Until the Mavericks turn the page from Dirk, it's going to be difficult for them to land a top-tier free agent."